Pentagon proposes 10-percent cut in spending for electronics and communications in 2012 budget

WASHINGTON, 15 Feb. 2011. Leaders of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) propose spending $15.81 billion in fiscal year 2012 for procurement and research in military communications, electronics, telecommunications, and intelligence (CET&I) technologies, which would represent a cut of 10.43 percent from current-year enacted levels of $17.65 billion, according to Pentagon budget documents.This amount in the 2012 DOD budget does not include military activities with substantial electronics content, such as aircraft avionics, vetronics, and missile guidance; when these are added, DOD spending levels for military electronics and defense electro-optics could approach $100.6 billion, industry analysts believe.Experts estimate that total DOD information technology, electronics, and electro-optics spending is roughly 15 percent of the total DOD budget. Most of the DOD's technology spending is in the procurement, research, and development accounts.

The DOD's CET&I budget request for next year consists of $10.36 billion in CET&I procurement -- down 10.62 percent from current-year levels of $11.59 billion -- and $5.45 billion in CET&I research and development -- down 10.07 percent from current-year levels of $6.06 billion.

The U.S. Army in 2012 is asking for $6.17 billion in CET&I procurement -- down 19 percent from current-year levels of $7.62 billion. The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps in 2012 are asking for $2.07 billion CET&I procurement -- up 28.41 percent from current-year levels of $1.62 billion. The U.S. Air Force in 2012 is asking for $2.02 billion for CET&I procurement -- down 11.9 percent from current-year levels of $2.29 billion. Service-independent Pentagon agencies are asking for $89.81 million in CET&I procurement in 2012 -- up 44.26 percent from current-year levels of $62.26 million.

In total for 2012, which begins next Oct. 1, DOD leaders are asking Congress for $670.9 billion -- $553.1 billion in discretionary spending, and $117.8 billion to support the continuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan -- which the Obama Administration calls "overseas contingency operations."

The Pentagon for next year is asking for $113.01 billion for procurement -- up from the 2011 request of $104.79 billion; $75.33 billion for research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E) -- a drop from the 2011 request of $80.39 billion; and $204.42 billion for operations and maintenance -- up sharply from the 2011 request of $184.49 billion.